Operations

FIRE RESCUE OPERATIONS

Deputy Fire Chief Chris Blankenship provides executive leadership to the Fire Rescue Operations Division. Fire Operations is the largest division of Fire Rescue and is comprised of Line Personnel, Safety & Professional Development, and the Emergency Medical Services Division (EMS). Line Operations is comprised of 3 shifts working a 24 hour on /48 hour off shift schedule. Each shift is led by a Battalion Chief with 35 members assigned to each of the three shifts for a total of 105 line personnel. The minimum daily staffing level is 29. A three member team, the Coverage Crew, also supplements staffing during daytime hours when call volume is at its peak. All line personnel are cross-trained in both firefighting and EMS. We respond to all types of calls for service; fires, medical emergencies, motor vehicle collisions, hazardous materials spills, and specialized rescues. The members are required to participate in extensive year round training activities to maintain and improve their skills.

The ability to improve our service is generated through many initiatives that originate from our members. Their values, energy, commitment, and compassion drive many of Fire Rescue’s functions, programs, and services throughout the year. The Operations Division personnel are the men and women you see every day out in the community accomplishing the department’s mission to provide extraordinary service to the community.

Chris Blankenship

Deputy Fire Chief

OPERATIONS NUMBERS

• 7,694 - Total calls for service • 5,312 - EMS Calls • 2,382 - Fire/Service Calls • 366 - Open burning compliance checks • 3,000+ - Hydrant Inspections • 39,600 feet - Total Fire Hose Tested

LINE OPERATIONS

Line Operations personnel are divided into three shifts, providing round-the-clock service to the community. Three Battalion Chiefs manage the shift personnel for the 24 hour tour of duty.

Jason Walters

Battalion Chief – A Shift

Chad McRorie

Jeff Hartberger

Battalion Chief – B Shift Battalion Chief – C Shift

TECHNICAL RESCUE TEAM

Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue has two Special Operations Teams - South Carolina Task Force 4 (SCTF-4) and South Carolina Hazardous Materials Emergency Response Team 4 (SCHM-4). These teams are comprised of firefighters from Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue and Bluffton Township Fire District. The teams are ready to respond to significant technical rescue and hazardous materials emergencies locally, regionally, and statewide.

TECHNICAL RESCUE TEAM

The Technical Rescue Team (SCTF-4) provides rescue, recovery, and disaster assistance at various types of incidents. These incidents may involve collapsed buildings, trench collapse, confined space rescue, high angle rescue, heavy vehicle or machinery entrapment, large area search, and flood water evacuation and rescue.

As part of the State of SC Emergency Response Task Force, the team serves as one of five SC Regional Urban Search & Rescue Response Teams and is subject to deployment anywhere in the state through Firefighter Mobilization.

The team is comprised of fifty firefighters from Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue and Bluffton Township Fire District and is available for emergency responses within both jurisdictions on an around the clock basis, every day of the year. Additionally, the team provides technical rescue response to the City of Hardeeville, the Town of Ridgeland, and Jasper County through mutual aid agreements. In 2020 there were thirteen incidents in which the team participated as a partial or full team response.

TECHNICAL RESCUE TEAM

Ten monthly training sessions were conducted which included skills development and disaster scenarios. Several members attended specialty training and twenty members obtained swift water technician certification in Rock Hill, SC. Sixteen members also completed a floodwater boat operations class in June.

The team participated in a statewide multi-agency rescue drill in Columbia in March. A full team was deployed and operated for several hours in a simulated collapsed building. This was the team’s required annual performance evaluation conducted by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

In 2020, using Department of Homeland Security funding, the team designed and purchased a regional floodwater response trailer. This trailer transports two boats with additional dry storage area for personal protective and water rescue equipment. The trailer has a built-in decontamination system, lighting, and generator for self-sustained operations

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM

The Hazardous Materials Emergency Response Team (SCHM-4) responds to emergency calls involving the release of hazardous materials or to test chemicals to determine the risk posed to the community. The purpose of SCHM-4 is to provide victim removal from hazardous atmospheres, decontamination of individuals exposed to contaminants, and incident stabilization/property (environmental) conservation through hazardous materials identification and release mitigation. The Team also serves as a Regional Hazmat and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) response asset for the State of South Carolina and is subject to deployment anywhere in the state through Firefighter Mobilization. The Team is comprised of firefighters from Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue and Bluffton Township Fire District. SCHM-4 provides hazardous materials response coverage to the City of Hardeeville, the Town of Ridgeland, and Jasper County through mutual aid agreements. Team members attend monthly training while on duty and off duty throughout the year. The topics also ensure team members meet national standards.

The SCHM-4 also participates in operational readiness exercises that are developed and administered by the State to evaluate the team’s performance. In early 2020, SCHM-4 traveled to Columbia, SC for a simulated mass casualty decontamination event, and was assigned to work alongside a team from Rock Hill, SC. This was beneficial as it allowed personnel to experience and understand different mitigation strategies and to function inside the complex framework of a large incident. SCHM-4 constantly strives to stay up to date with new detection technologies that are available for hazardous material mitigation. This year saw the replacement of outdated air monitoring equipment and the addition of new laptop computers used during incident management.

COVID19

In 2020 Fire Rescue like the rest of the world was impacted by the global pandemic known as COVID-19. Fire Rescue adapted our procedures in areas such as call processing, response, and personal protective equipment (PPE). The changes made early in the pandemic were crucial to keeping our staff and those we serve safe. These changes were effective and have continued to carry us through this pandemic. At no time was staffing or response in jeopardy in 2020. Below is an example of our Covid-19 PPE guidance.